Michael Cohen to plead guilty, face jail time

Aug 21, 2018

Former Trump attorney Michael Cohen plans to plead guilty Tuesday in connection with the financial fraud investigation against him as part of a deal with prosecutors that includes jail time, Fox News has learned.

A source familiar with the deal told Fox News that it includes a guilty plea and jail time of between three and five years. The deal does not involve a cooperation agreement with federal prosecutors.

Cohen is scheduled to appear at a New York federal court hearing at 4 p.m. ET. The Associated Press reports that he will plead guilty to charges including campaign finance violations, bank fraud and tax evasion.

Cohen’s offices were raided in April by federal investigators looking into his financial dealings, including his alleged practice of paying women to stay silent about claims they had affairs with now-President Trump.

Cohen was behind a $130,000 payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels, and discussed with Trump a separate payment to former Playboy model Karen McDougal -- who said she had an affair with Trump in 2006. Cohen released a tape of a conversation from September 2016 of him and Trump discussing the possible payment to McDougal.

The Wall Street Journal reported in November 2016 that McDougal was paid $150,000 by American Media Inc. -- the parent company to the National Enquirer -- for the rights to the story, but it never ran. Trump has denied any affair with either Daniels or McDougal.

Investigators are also looking into Cohen's involvement in the New York taxi cab industry. The New York Times reported on Sunday that investigators are working to determine if Cohen committed bank fraud on over $20 million worth of loans related to his taxi businesses, as well as possible campaign finance violations related to the payments to the women.

Investigators were reportedly looking to determine whether Cohen misrepresented the value of his assets when applying for the loans, the Times reported.

The investigation is being handled by prosecutors at the Southern District of New York after it was referred to them by Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s office.

Trump has repeatedly blasted developments in the Cohen investigation. In April, after Cohen’s offices were raided, he declared “attorney-client privilege is dead.” Last month, he slammed both the FBI raid and Cohen’s taping of discussions about paying McDougal as “inconceivable.”

“Inconceivable that the government would break into a lawyer’s office (early in the morning) - almost unheard of,” he tweeted. “Even more inconceivable that a lawyer would tape a client - totally unheard of & perhaps illegal.”

Inconceivable that the government would break into a lawyer’s office (early in the morning) - almost unheard of. Even more inconceivable that a lawyer would tape a client - totally unheard of & perhaps illegal. The good news is that your favorite President did nothing wrong!

But, possibly in reference to questions about whether he had violated any campaign finance laws, Trump added that “your favorite President did nothing wrong!”

Cohen, who had been fiercely loyal to Trump, last month appeared to distance himself from Trump. He toldABC News that "my wife, my daughter and my son have my first loyalty and always will. I put family and country first."

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